Guardian lions and temple at entrace to Wat Suthep, Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep, Chiang Mai, Thailand

Naxian lions at the Lions Terrace, island of Delos, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Cyclades, Greek Islands, Greece, Europe

South entrance to Mandalay Hill with two giant Chinthe (guardian lion-dogs), Mandalay, Myanmar (Burma), Asia

Imperial guardian lion, Taoist temple, Nghia An Hoi Quan pagoda, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Indochina, Southeast Asia, Asia

Guardian lion and snakehead Naga, Preah Tineang Tevea Vinichhay Throne Hall in the Royal Palace, City Centre, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Indochina, Southeast Asia, Asia

Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, Altamura, Bari, Apulia, Italy

Chinese Guardian Lion with The Hong Kong Observation Wheel and IFC Building, Hong Kong, China, Asia

Chinese Guardian Lion with The Hong Kong Observation Wheel and IFC Building, Hong Kong, China, Asia

Lion statue, Borobudur, 9th-century Mahayana Buddhist temple, UNESCO World Heritage, Java, Indonesia

Traditional Shinto torii gate with guardian lion-dog statues surrounded by autumn foliage on Mount Hiei, near Kyoto, Honshu, Japan

One of four guardian lions, Dhauligiri Shanti Stupa (Dhauli Peace Pagoda), completed in 1972 with the collaboration of Nippon Buddha Sangha, atop Dhauli Hills on site of ancient temple, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India, Asia

Temple details in Kamakura, Honshu, Japan

Guardian Lion (Foo Dog) Figure in a temple in Hong Kong with incense smoke, Hong Kong, China

Temple Guardian statue of Chinese lion representing Yin force, female, An Giang Province, Mekong Delta, Vietnam

View of the Ozaki Shrine on a sunny day, Kanazawa City, Ishikawa Prefecture, Honshu, Japan

Close up of the guardian Lion statue in front of golden wall at the Hindu Temple of Changu Narayan, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Changunarayan, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal, Asia

Chinese Guardian Lion, Hong Kong, China, Asia

Stone guardian lion statue at the Audience Hall at Parakramabahu's Royal Palace, Polonnaruwa, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Sri Lanka, Asia

Imperial guardian lion statue, Chau Doc, Vietnam, Indochina, Southeast Asia, Asia

Tinh Xa Ngoc Chau Buddhist temple, Imperial guardian lion statue, Chau Doc, Vietnam, Indochina, Southeast Asia, Asia

Long Khanh Buddhist Pagoda, Imperial guardian lion statue at entrance, Quy Nhon, Vietnam, Indochina, Southeast Asia, Asia

Long Khanh Buddhist Pagoda, Imperial guardian lion statue at entrance, Quy Nhon, Vietnam, Indochina, Southeast Asia, Asia

Tourists sit on lion statues in front of National Gallery in Trafalgar Square, London, United Kingdom

A bronze statue of a lion guards the Forbidden City in Beijing, China.

A bronze guardian lion statue in the Lama Temple complex, a Buddhist temple in Beijing, China.

A bronze guardian lion statue in the Lama Temple complex, a Buddhist temple in Beijing, China.

Italy, Veneto, Venice, Centro Storico, Arsenale, Head of guardian lion of free Venice statue against blue sky of late summer